Thought for Wednesday, 29th Week in Ordinary Time

ROMANS 6:12-18
Brothers and sisters:
Sin must not reign over your mortal bodies
so that you obey their desires.
And do not present the parts of your bodies to sin
as weapons for wickedness,
but present yourselves to God as raised from the dead to life
and the parts of your bodies to God
as weapons for righteousness.
For sin is not to have any power over you,
since you are not under the law but under grace.

What then? Shall we sin because we are not under the law
but under grace?
Of course not!
Do you not know that if you present yourselves
to someone as obedient slaves,
you are slaves of the one you obey,
either of sin, which leads to death,
or of obedience, which leads to righteousness?
But thanks be to God that, although you were once slaves of sin,
you have become obedient from the heart
to the pattern of teaching to which you were entrusted.
Freed from sin, you have become slaves of righteousness.
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“Brothers and sisters: Sin must not reign over your mortal bodies so that you obey their desires.” We all have certain sins that have plagued us our whole lives or a tendency toward sin in a certain area of our lives. This is called concupiscence – the tendency toward sin.

If we truly want to grow in holiness, I recommend the following:

1) Self-reflection – this leads to self-awareness. Where is my weakness? In what areas of my life do I turn toward sin?

2) Acknowledgment of sin – accept the fact that I am a sinner and that I cannot do anything without the grace of God. Often the sins that plague us have an origin. These are often wounds from our childhood. Do I know the origin of my sins?

3) Ask for God’s grace – relate the wounds of your life to Jesus in prayer. Talk to Him about your brokenness and ask for His grace to heal you and to sooth the wounds of our soul. Allow this grace to pour over you daily in prayer.

4) Receive the grace in gratitude. Bask in God’s love and mercy. Know that you are God’s beloved son/daughter.

5) Allow the Holy Spirit to guide your life. Don’t try to do this on your own, especially avoiding your sinfulness. This is not something we can do by sheer will power. Fast and pray to discipline your body and your passions. And continually ask for God’s grace and the inspiration of the Holy Spirit to live according to God’s commandments of love daily.

In the reading today we are called to obey God if we want to live righteous lives. “Obey” comes from the Latin word meaning “to listen”. Listen to God’s voice that echoes in our hearts. Usually God speaks like this:
• I love you.
• I forgive you.
• I pour my mercy upon you.
• I want to heal you.

Listen to the Lord. Even though we are sinners, with God’s grace and mercy, all things are possible.